OTT Review: Harikatha – Telugu Series on Disney+ Hotstar

Harikatha is the latest suspense thriller series to have its digital premiere on Disney+ Hotstar. Starring Rajendra Prasad and Sriram in lead roles and produced under the People Media Factory banner, the series has started streaming from today. Check out our review to find out how the series fared.

Story:

Harikatha’s story unfolds in a tribal village near Araku between the 1980s and 1990s. A boy named Hari (Suman) from a lower caste goes to jail in a murder case. A Harikatha artiste named Rangachari (Rajendra Prasad) narrates the avatars of Lord Vishnu under his Rangachari Nataka Mandali.

Whenever Rangachari performs a particular Vishnu avatar, suspicious and brutal murders take place in the same way as which avatar is performed on that day. The villagers strongly believe that God, in his multiple avatars, is behind these killings. On the other hand, police officer Virat (Sriram) suspects Rangachari. Who is behind these killings and the death of Virat’s friend, the local SI (Arjun Jayat)? Watch Harikatha to unravel the mystery and to know about the tragedy in Rangachari’s life.

Plus Points:

The basic premise, where each avatar of God commits murders, is quite impressive. Several scenes that are laced with a devotional touch give goosebumps. Also, a few suspenseful scenes revolving around the murders are good. The series is executed in a natural setting. The way each death resembles the Lord Vishnu avatar performed in Harikatha adds to the intrigue factor.

Nata Kiriti Rajendra Prasad is undoubtedly the best part of Harikatha. Long back, his performance as Lord Sri Krishna in the movie Kannayya Kittayya mesmerized us. And in Harikatha, we can see the class and caliber in his performance, especially when he portrays Lord Vishnu’s incarnations. The young actor who played Dasu and the actress who played Rajendra Prasad’s granddaughter were quite good.

Popular actor Sriram is back with yet another fine performance in this series. He handled many serious scenes and portrayed all the emotions well. Additionally, the devotional scenes and the emotional scenes in the last three episodes are moving. The way the characters of Sriram and Rajendra Prasad are connected, along with Dasu’s character, is quite good. Divi, Poojita, and other actors also performed well.

Minus Points:

The devotional theme of Harikatha is good, but the way it is presented as a routine revenge drama disappoints slightly. While the emotional scenes worked quite well, the series is often let down by some routine scenes. It would have been nice if there had been a stronger conflict in the series.

Certain scenes should have been designed to give more high moments. Also, a few scenes seem a little over the top. A few unnecessary characters spoil the otherwise smooth narrative. A fight sequence featuring Divi suddenly feels superficial. Also, there are minor flaws in Dasu’s character. Some songs in Harikatha come across as speedbreakers.

Technical Aspects:

The production values by leading Tollywood production house People Media Factory are surprisingly average. The village milieu, cinematography, and set work are impressive, but the visual effects are shabby. The title sequence on Dasavataralu is quite good. Suresh Bobbili’s music is okay, and so is Junaid Siddique’s editing. The story should have been narrated crisply with faster cuts.

Coming to director Maggi, he designed the devotional scenes, especially in the Dasavatars, and the murders related to each avatar are good, but the series ends up being a routine revenge drama. Killing a girl by many people seems routine, but giving it a devotional touch is a little novel. The screenplay is good in connecting some dots, especially when it justifies the title ‘Harikatha.

Verdict:

Harikatha is a routine and average revenge drama. The core theme of God himself being linked to the killings is interesting, and the suspense elements evoke curiosity to an extent. However, the revenge plot feels quite mundane. On the whole, the series ends up being an underwhelming watch.

123telugu.com Rating: 2.5/5

Reviewed by 123telugu Team 

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